Mark Andrews defends Marquise Brown following bad day

Baltimore Ravens tight end Mark Andrews came to the defense of teammate Marquise Brown recently. The third-year wideout from the University of Oklahoma had a bad case of the dropsies in their week three game. Brown had three drops in the game and all of which could have been touchdowns.

Brown and the Ravens

The Ravens celebrated a last-second victory over the Detriot Lions on Sunday thanks to kicker Justin Tucker’s NFL record, 66-yard field goal. But most watching the game couldn’t help but wonder if Tucker’s epic kick would’ve been necessary if Brown could’ve pulled in those passes.

On Sunday following the win, Andrews and others on the team shot down any negative notations about Brown’s performance. He even shared what he told his wideout after the win.

“I told Marquise, just be yourself. Things like that happen,” Andrews said, via the team’s website. “He’s a dog at the end of the day, he’s going to be great, he’s going to continue to make plays. This is not going to define him.”

Brown is the Ravens team leader in almost all receiving categories. He has 15 catches on 23 targets for 235 yards and two touchdown grabs. He also leads the team in big plays, plays of 20 or more yards, with five.

Ravens’ offensive identity

For his NFL career, he does not have the same eye-popping stats he had in college with the Sooners. For his career, he has a total of 1,588 receiving yards on 119 catches with 17 touchdowns. Compared to his two years with the Sooners where he had 2,413 receiving yards, 132 receptions, and 17 touchdowns. He also had at least 1,000 yards receiving in both seasons but has yet to have a 1,000-yard season in the pro. Contributing to that fact could be the Ravens run-heavy offense centered around quarterback Lamar Jackson’s gifts.

Unfortunately for them, Baltimore’s backfield has been decimated by injuries this year. They are without Justice Hill, Gus Edwards, and J.K Dobbins who are all out for the season. Hill and Dobbins suffered ACL tears, while Edwards ruptured his Achilles.

With the Ravens’ key offensive focus — running the ball — missing personnel to make that style work, Brown and the passing game have a chance to take over and evolve the identity of the team. But in order for that to happen, Brown has to limit drops and in addition to that, he’ll need to put this game behind him to continue his strong early-season play.